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A part of Portlandia is coming to the Dogpatch, removing any doubt that the Dogpatch/Mission Bay land rush is on.

As reported earlier today by the Oregonian, the latest out-of-town restaurateur to set sights on San Francisco is Kurt Huffman, whose ChefStable group boasts 14 (!) restaurants in Portland and Seattle. He has finalized a deal in a former boiler manufacturing facility at the Dogpatch corner of 19th and Third Streets. And he’s bringing some friends along; he’s partnered with Bi-Rite-Market for the event space, and Napa Valley Distillery for, you guessed it, a distillery.

A little background: Huffman, who is probably Portland’s most prolific restaurateur, went to business school at Berkeley from 2006 to 2008, and ChefStable was the result. Two of his original partners in the business remained in the Bay Area in an advisory capacity.

Huffman says that getting Bi-Rite involved in the project was key.

“Everything we do in Portland is built on this foundation of what I think is great food,” he says. “Everything is product-driven. Some restaurant groups seem to be more scene drive, or vibe driven. We’re product driven.”

“It’s not something I would’ve done four years ago. San Francisco has a very mature and demanding dining population,” he continues. “If you have something to say in a conversation, you better be confident in what you bring.”

However, Huffman couldn’t really say what exactly he expects to bring to said conversation, since there is not a chef or concept for the 3,000-square-foot restaurant yet: “The most important thing, for me, is that whatever we say, I’m not going to be embarrassed by it.”

The chef search is underway, but Huffman says he envisions a 100-seat restaurant, evenly split between the bar and dining room. An opening is at least 12 months away. And given that he’ll need change of use permits and liquor licensing, 12 months could end up being an optimistic timeline; Huffman can probably ask Dave McLean how long it takes to get permits in this town.

One thing that is clear is Bi-Rite’s involvement.

“We’re going to be doing the exclusive catering for the event space,” says Bi-Rite’s Sam Mogannam. “It’s a beautiful building that we’ll be able to do service for up to 400.”